As we made our way down the highway, a gang of ruffians suddenly ambushed us from both directions, boxing us in from the front and rear.
Fifty in front, fifty behind—around a hundred men in total.
Every single one was armed, bearing the unmistakable expressions of men well-accustomed to violence.
"Master..."
"Don't worry."
I rested a hand on Shirley's head, giving her a subtle nod to signal that her passable acting was just fine as it was.
Leaping down from the carriage, I projected my voice across the road.
"I am Millrace Truth. As you can see, I am a traveling merchant. May I ask what business you have with me?"
At my words, a young man stepped forward from the fifty men blocking our front.
Like the others, he was burly and clearly hardened by rough business, but his eyes stood out—they held an unmistakable air of calm composure.
"We know you're a merchant. We just thought we'd collect a little toll, that's all."
"A toll, you say?"
"That's right. As a merchant, you know how these things work, don't you?"
The man answered with an easy smile.
"And if I refuse to pay?"
"Come now, it's not as if you can't afford it, right?"
The man tossed the remark back, his smile never wavering.
That confirmed it. Word of my lavish spending at the inn yesterday had reached his ears.
"You'd do best to just hand it over quietly. That way, nobody has to get hurt."
"Unfortunately, I have no intention of paying."
The man's smile vanished in an instant.
Murmurs rippled through his subordinates.
It seemed they had never imagined a mere merchant would outright dismiss their demand like this.
"Then it can't be helped. You'll just have to learn the hard way. Hey."
The man jerked his chin, and three of his lackeys stepped forward from behind him, cracking their knuckles and rolling their necks.
"Look at him, pretty-boy face and all."
"I can't stand spoiled little rich boys like this."
"If you're gonna cry, you'd better start now."
Trading jeers back and forth, the men lunged at me.
All three drew the battered longswords at their waists and slashed down.
Wreathing my fist in Bahamut's flames, I swept my arm across in a casual backhand.
The moment my blow met their weapons, more than half of each blade melted away into liquid slag.
Sizzle... Bright red molten iron dripped and scorched the earth.
The men froze, utterly unable to process what had just happened.
Without giving them a chance to recover, I punched all three away.
Engulfed in grand, blazing fireballs purely for dramatic effect, the men went sailing through the air.
"Incredible, Master!"
True to her instructions, Shirley cheered dutifully from atop the carriage.
"...I see. You really do want to learn the hard way."
At the young leader's command, the bandits charged in unison.
Enveloping both fists in Bahamut's flames, I moved forward to meet them.
I melted their weapons, turned their bodies into spectacular fireballs, and blew them backward one after another.
Enemy after enemy was swept aside, crashing to the ground and writhing in agony.
Every single one of them was rushing straight for me.
Are none of them going for the carriage?—or so I wondered, right until:
"Don't move! O-One twitch and the girl gets it!"
The sudden threat brought both the bandits and me to a dead halt.
Turning slowly, I saw that one of the bandits had leapt onto the carriage. He had seized Shirley from behind in a full nelson, pressing the edge of his sword tight against her throat.
"..."
I said nothing.
"B-Boss! Now's your chance, take him!"
Seeing me freeze, the man shouted to the young leader.
The youth drew his sword in silence and began walking forward—slipping right past me.
"Huh—gwoh!"
And, without a single shred of hesitation, he cut down his own subordinate.
"W-Why...?"
Slashed across the chest and tumbling off the carriage, the man stared up at his leader in sheer disbelief.
"Taking a woman hostage? Have you no shame?!"
"Ugh..."
Spitting the words with disgust, the youth turned back toward Shirley.
"You're safe now... Huh?"
Then, it was his turn to freeze in shock.
The sword was still stuck flat against Shirley's neck.
The blade the hostage-taker had pressed against her throat remained glued to her skin, failing to leave even a scratch.
"As expected of Master. No matter what happens, I never feel in the slightest bit of danger."
Shirley looked down at me with pure reverence.
Her cheer from earlier was an act I had ordered her to perform beforehand.
If their eyes went to Shirley from the start, fine; if not, she would raise her voice to draw their attention.
I wanted to see how the young leader would handle it.
Naturally, to ensure Shirley wouldn't suffer so much as a scratch, I had linked the Ring of Armor with Leviathan—my most loyal and faithful hound—and ordered it to focus entirely on protecting her.
The result of that defense was the spectacle of the blade adhering harmlessly to her flesh.
Watching this unfold, the young leader was utterly stunned, looking back at me with growing trepidation.
"Just who... in the world are you...?"
I could see the gears turning behind his eyes.
At the very least, he no longer mistook me for an ordinary merchant.
"Raymond Glyph Dailey."
"!!!"
The young man stiffened in sheer shock.
Among the ranks behind him, confused whispers of "Glyph?" began to spread.
"Wondering how I know your full name when you've gone by nothing but Raymond Dailey for the past twenty years? You stopped using it after your father died in prison, didn't you?"
"How... do you know that?"
His voice was entirely different from before—a hoarse rasp wrenched from the depths of his throat.
"After your father, the magistrate, died, you lived as a beggar before drifting into banditry. You lived quietly enough that way, but one day, unable to stomach the old leader attempting to violate a subordinate's wife, you flew into a rage, killed him, and took over the gang with the backing of your peers."
"...You've certainly done your homework. Just who the hell are you?"
The latter half of his history—his rise within the bandit crew—wasn't something he kept hidden; it was common knowledge among his current men. Once I brought that up, Raymond regained much of his composure.
"Keep down this path, and you will not meet a decent end."
"I made my peace with that the day I took up this trade. It's just the life I was born into."
"What if I told you there was another way?"
"As if such a thing exists."
"I had your father investigated. He was imprisoned for distributing famine relief to refugees on his own authority. An unauthorized act is still unauthorized, but under a new Emperor, such matters are handled differently."
"Handled differently how?" Raymond asked, his voice laced with a scoff.
"Enough to posthumously grant him the title of Baron."
"...Just who are you, really?"
The suspicion in Raymond's gaze only deepened.
"Shirley."
"Yes, Master."
Shirley nodded and launched a signal flare into the sky.
Resembling a handheld firework, it shot straight upward, unleashing a thunderous crack and a flash of brilliant light clearly visible even under the midday sun.
Less than a minute later, the rumble of earth-shaking footsteps rolled in.
After another minute, soldiers broke through the tree line.
Two thousand troops suddenly surged forward, encircling the hundred bandits who had encircled me.
Once the perimeter was secure, Cheryl strode to the front and stopped before me.
"Cheryl Hyde, reporting as ordered—Your Majesty."
With those words, Cheryl dropped to one knee before me.
At the same instant, all two thousand soldiers dropped to their knees as well.
Two thousand imperial regulars, impeccably outfitted and disciplined.
Seeing that entire army kneel in unison before me, the bandits, Raymond included, drained of all color.
"Y-Your Majesty...? You're—no, you are..."
"Noah Ararat. I am the Emperor."
"—!"
Looking as though he had been struck by lightning, Raymond stumbled back a step.
He remained frozen in place for ten whole seconds.
Snapping back to his senses, Raymond dropped to both knees and offered a deep, perfectly mannered bow.
Following his lead, the bandits knelt one after another.
Shirley hopped down from the carriage and assumed a kneeling posture as well.
Out of two thousand one hundred souls, every single person was on bended knee while I alone stood tall.
A spectacle that belonged to none other than the Emperor.
Looking down upon him with calm authority, I broke the silence.
"I had your past investigated, and I have witnessed firsthand how you handled yourself today."
"Sire..."
"You are too good a man to throw your life away. Will you enter my service?"
Startled, Raymond snapped his head up.
"I-Is this about my father's—"
"That has nothing to do with it. His honor has already been restored."
"—!"
Raymond's shock deepened, a look of profound gratitude brimming in his eyes.
"Incredible..." one of the women murmured in awe from the ranks.
Lowering his head once more, Raymond pressed his forehead toward the ground.
"As Your Majesty commands. Please, make use of this life however you see fit."
――――――――――――
Name: Noah Ararat
Emperor of the Empire
Gender: Male
Level: 15 + 1 / ∞
HP: C + C MP: E + C Strength: C + S Stamina: D + C Intelligence: D + B Spirit: E + C Speed: E + C Dexterity: E + C Luck: E + C
Fire: E + S Water: C + SS Wind: E + C Earth: E + C Light: E + B Darkness: E + B
―――――――――――
Body and soul, he had surrendered to me.